Lynch, D’Alessandro debate health care, war, bailouts

Congressman Stephen Lynch and his Democratic prmiary challenger, Mac D’Alessandro, tried to out-“shame” each other during a brief television debate today on WBZ-TV.

Steven Ryan

Congressman Stephen Lynch and his Democratic prmiary challenger, Mac D’Alessandro, tried to out-“shame” each other during a brief television debate today on WBZ-TV.

The candidates squared during a taping of Keller@Large moderated by WBZ Political Analyst Jon Keller. Lynch and D’Alessandro tackled Lynch’s national health care bill vote, troops in Afghanistan and their political “values.”

The 15-minute debate can be viewed on Keller@Largeon Sunday, Aug. 29, at 8:30 a.m. on Channel 4. It is the first time the two candidates have appeared together.

In response to a question about which candidate best represents organized labor, Lynch, who worked as an ironworker and was a former union president, said he would better represent “working families.”

“I’m the only candidate in this race who has strapped on a pair of work boots,” Lynch said.

D’Alessandro, a policy director for Services Employees International Union, countered by talking about his experience at the SEIU and bringing up Lynch’s national health care bill vote, in which he voted against the final version of that bill.

“There is the part of Congressman Lynch’s record, his ‘no’ vote on health care reform, which actually I believe let down many of those same [working] families,” D’Alessandro said, stating Lynch aligned himself with insurance companies who were against reform.

“You stood with those very same insurance companies,” D’Alessandro said.

Lynch argued he voted against the bill because he felt the final version was inadequate. But he stated he is for health care reform.

“I did vote against it on behalf of those families; it was a big sellout to the insurance companies,” said Lynch, who stated he felt the lack of a public option in the bill sold it short. “If you read the bill, which I don’t think you did, you would know that wasn’t in the bill…Once the public option went away, you didn’t see any commercials against this bill.”

The candidates also spoke about Lynch’s vote in favor of President Barack Obama’s $37 billion request to fund the war effort in Afghanistan.

“I think the president has a solid plan,” Lynch said. “We owe the President the support to put that plan into play and to leave Afghanistan in a stable condition.”

D’Alessandro said he would have voted against the request.

“By voting no, we’re saying, ‘Let’s start asking the tough questions on how we get out,’” D’Alessandro. “The brave men in uniform, their families, the American citizens deserve answers.”

Lynch said he sided with Democrats seeking answers on a withdrawal timeline but he did not support cutting funding troops already in Afghanistan.

“I’ve been in the field with those troops,” Lynch said. “Talking about cutting off funding to them in the field, that was the vote and I did not support it.”

D’Alessandro countered by vouching for other methods of achieving the objective of rooting out Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, such as economic, humanitarian and diplomatic “tools,” rather than rely on the current level of troops there.

“We shouldn’t have so many troops in harm’s way to root out 50 to 100 guys,” D’Alessandro said.

The candidates also discussed D’Alessandro assertion that Lynch’s “values” are “out of step” with the district.

In response, Lynch touted what he feels is his non-partisan approach to his office, while also feeling he supports many of the same issues as D’Alessandro.

“I don’t always do the liberal thing or the conservation thing; I’m not an ideologue,” Lynch said, while noting his vote against the government bailout to banks. “I stood up to Wall Street. They wanted taxpayer money. I was one Congressman who stood up to Wall Street and said, ‘No,’ we’re not going to give taxpayer money to Wall Street banks that have fouled up this economy.”

D’Alessandro called Lynch’s bailout vote “irresponsible.”

“It wasn’t just about Wall Street,” D’Alessandro said. “Many economists across the political spectrum felt at the time that without that shot in the arm from Washington DC the fragile economy we faced at the time would have completely fell off the cliff.”

Lynch shot back and criticized D’Alessandro’s stance on the bailout.

“So you stood with Wall Street and you agreed they should have been able to pay their workers, Wall Street executives, millions of dollars; that was what was at stake here. Shame on you. Shame on you. Shame on you,” Lynch said. “Standing with Wall Street. Are you kidding me? Oh my god. That’s a shame.”

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